The body of a high school teacher who drowned in Mumias East subcounty river on Sunday is yet to be found.
Joseph Ayoti, a teacher at St Peter's Boys, Mumias drowned after his Saloon car hit a motorbike on the Lusumu river bridge at 8:30 pm on Sunday.
The motorbike rider, a primary school teacher died on the spot as his woman passenger was rushed to St Mary’s hospital in Mumias town with serious injuries.
According to eyewitnesses, the car rammed into a motorbike while it was raining and plunged into the river, where it was later retrieved.
“People who were nearby when the accident tried to tie a rope around his waist to rescue him but it slipped off as they tried to pull himself up and was swept by raging water,” a witness said.
Search efforts to retrieve the body are still ongoing.
The family on Tuesday appealed for help to retrieve the body.
The deceased brother Thomas Osuka said the youths who are assisting in the search have no equipment.
“No police officer or government official has come to our aid since we started searching for my brother’s body,” he said.
He said their search efforts were frustrated by the torrential flow of the river due to heavy rains pounding the region and poor visibility.
It remained unclear whether Oyoti had passengers in his car at the time of the accident.
